The Street Casino

Survival in Violent Street Gangs

Paper $45.95ISBN: 9781447317180
Published
August 2014
For sale in North and South America only

Cloth $116.00ISBN: 9781447317173
Published
August 2014
For sale in North and South America only

Gang violence is a continual problem in urban neighborhoods around the world. But most of our understanding of the violence and its causes comes through the lens of policing and crime control, with little attention to the role played by the structure, organization, and social makeup of a gang. The Street Casino offers new insight on that front, drawing on an extensive ethnographic study of gang members and community residents in South London. Simon Harding uses this new data to propose a new theoretical perspective on survival in violent street gangs, a constantly fluctuating life built on the accrual of “street capital.”

Introduction Academic Gangland The Game, the Stakes, the Rules - key concepts House Rules and Game Strategies Player, positions and keeping order Playing the Game – generating and keeping your chips Staying in the Game – and playing to win The Game in action – habitus, street capital and territory Learning the risks of the Game Surviving the Game Creating the House Advantage - the role of information Playing the Queen – gender in the gang The Wheel of Fortune – the sanctions repertoire The Street Casino

Review Quotes

National Gang Crime Research Center

Winner of the Frederic Milton Thrasher Award

Jana Grekul, University of Alberta, Canada | Criminal Law and Criminal Justice Books

“Through his use of field theory, the concept of street capital, and his casino metaphor, Harding offers the reader a theoretical analysis of the gang situation in SW9 that is accessible, current, and highly engaging.”

Podacademy

“Provides a highly explanatory theoretical account which is both accessible and relevant.”

James Densley, Metropolitan State University

“Theoretically rich and thought-provoking, Harding’s casino metaphor captures perfectly the addiction of street life. With clear implications for policy and practice, Street Casino is a winner—a true breakthrough in street gang research.”

Anthony Goodman, Middlesex University

“An important book which takes our understanding of gang membership significantly forward. Harding suggests solutions for the young people who are involved in the damage caused by this phenomenon and makes a powerful case for why ignoring it is not an option.”

For more information, or to order this book, please visit https://www.press.uchicago.edu